More than 80 percent of North Korean defectors are women, says report

Women in North Korea are not subject to the same strict surveillance as North Korean men, and are allowed more freedom of movement.

North Korean women dressed in traditional dresses, leave the restaurant they work at and head to the North Korean embassy in Beijing, on December 17, 2006. Women participate in North Korea’s unofficial economy in at higher rates and the country’s gray markets have continued to proliferate. UPI Photo/Stephen Shaver | License Photo

SEOUL, July 6 (UPI) -- North Korean defectors are overwhelmingly women, according to a South Korean government report released Sunday.

The preliminary data from Seoul's Unification Ministry indicated of the 535 North Koreans who sought asylum in South Korea in 2015, 444 were women, South Korean news agency Yonhap reported.

Women in North Korea are not subject to the same strict surveillance in place for North Korean men, according to South Korean newspaper Hankyoreh.

The North Korean state employs men in higher numbers, and a prolonged absence from the workplace is likely to raise a red flag.